which to best?

[benbenhor]

Picking a graphic card is so hard! So, need you guys' help between these:

- Gainward Phantom GTX 970

- MSI GTX 970 Armor (Tiger)

- Palit GTX 970 Jetstream

- Zotac GTX 970

 

Gigabyte G1 and Asus Strix are too expensive..so these are the next best I could find. Looking at the core speed, Gainward and Palit are the better ones. But would love some feedback.

[the jolly roger]

 

Picking a graphic card is so hard! So, need you guys' help between these:

- Gainward Phantom GTX 970

- MSI GTX 970 Armor (Tiger)

- Palit GTX 970 Jetstream

- Zotac GTX 970

 

Gigabyte G1 and Asus Strix are too expensive..so these are the next best I could find. Looking at the core speed, Gainward and Palit are the better ones. But would love some feedback.

 

i like the palait and the gainward

[Imakuni]

1: don't get the MSI Tiger. It has thermal problems, and throttles itself on high load.

2: Zotac is crap. And this model, in particular, also has thermal problems.

3: If I recall correctly, the Palit was also on the "bad temps" list. But I'm not 100% sure.

 

Tell me, can you afford the MSI Gaming 4g, or, the Gigabyte WIndforce OC (it's NOT the g1 gaming, it's another card)?

[Lolzious]

the Gainward is my choice. Zotac is a steaming pile of clam, MSI Tiger, and Palit are just.. No.

[,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,]

Choose which ever card best matches your build. They all perform the same and work the same.

Most of the features on each card are the same too.

[Aniallation]

 

Picking a graphic card is so hard! So, need you guys' help between these:

- Gainward Phantom GTX 970

- MSI GTX 970 Armor (Tiger)

- Palit GTX 970 Jetstream

- Zotac GTX 970

 

None of these are particularly great. Rather get a good R9 290

[79wjd]

-snip-

As would a 970. 

[JeffreyEagan]

-snip-

Stop it. 970's are fine for 1920x1080 gaming. Even stretch to 2k and you'd still be fine.

[Lolzious]

Stop it. 970's are fine for 1920x1080 gaming. Even stretch to 2k and you'd still be fine.

 

 

As would a 970. 

3.5gb of VRAM, ok all good nice and fast. But then, 1/4 of your VRAM is slow as shit? Nvidia is better than this, and we all know it.

[TheKDub]

the Gainward is my choice. Zotac is a steaming pile of clam, MSI Tiger, and Palit are just.. No.

 

A 290X would also use around 2x the power and output much more heat too.

 

If possible the Gigabyte GTX 970 Windforce would be a good option. (Not the g1 gaming, though its pretty much the same thing as the g1 gaming just without a glowing logo, backplate, and dual bios)

[79wjd]

3.5gb of VRAM, ok all good nice and fast. But then, 1/4 of your VRAM is slow as shit? Nvidia is better than this, and we all know it.

If drivers put the desktop and other random crap on the slow .5gb (1/8th) then it's not an issue whatsoever. And at sub-4k resolutions, 3.5gb of VRAM is more than enough. 

 

/point being, this shit with the 970 needs to stop. If you want to suggest not going Nvidia for ethical reasons, then thats another story. 

[JeffreyEagan]

3.5gb of VRAM, ok all good nice and fast. But then, 1/4 of your VRAM is slow as shit? Nvidia is better than this, and we all know it.

STOP IT. HE WANTS OPINIONS ON CHOOSING A CARD, NOT A STUPID FLAME WAR.

[Aniallation]

1: don't get the MSI Tiger. It has thermal problems, and throttles itself on high load.

It doesn't have thermal problems. The throttling is due to power delivery issues.

[Imakuni]

It doesn't have thermal problems. The throttling is due to power delivery issues.

Pardon me, you were right.

 

Still, has throttling issues. And cannot OC.

[benbenhor]

Well...that was awkward..anyway can't go for the 290x as I'm getting a 520watt psu..so yeah.... And about the windforce and gaming 4g, they are a bit too pricey for me, hence why those 4 I mentioned earlier were the only options I have

[79wjd]

Well...that was awkward..anyway can't go for the 290x as I'm getting a 520watt psu..so yeah.... And about the windforce and gaming 4g, they are a bit too pricey for me, hence why those 4 I mentioned earlier were the only options I have

Get a large PSU? 

 

Anyway, you can use an R9 290/x with a decent 520w psu. 

[benbenhor]

Get a large PSU?

Anyway, you can use an R9 290/x with a decent 520w psu.

Errmmm....I'm not really a Radeon guy..would prefer GeForce..and I've already decided on the 520watt and budgeted for it..so not planning to find another PSU

[Imakuni]

And about the windforce and gaming 4g, they are a bit too pricey for me, hence why those 4 I mentioned earlier were the only options I have

According to a bit of research, that's only 9$ difference to get the gigabyte over the MSI tiger.

 

Tell us the rest of the parts that you didn't buy yet, and maybe we could find something worth cheaping out in favor of a decent GPU.

[benbenhor]

According to a bit of research, that's only 9$ difference to get the gigabyte over the MSI tiger.

 

Tell us the rest of the parts that you didn't buy yet, and maybe we could find something worth cheaping out in favor of a decent GPU.

Yeah, I did some research as well and I wasn't able to find any shops selling the Gigabyte Windforce OC. Anyway I live in Malaysia where choices are limited and prices are amazingly hiked up. So I'll just list down the cheapest of what I've been able to find and in my country's currency (RM) so you can see the price difference (including the ones I stated above).

*sorted - cheapest to most expensive*

 

- Gainward GTX970 (Reference) - RM1099

- MSI GTX970 4G OC (TIGER) - RM1249

- Zotac GTX970 Dual Fans 4GBD5 256 - RM1249

- Palit GTX970 Jetstream - RM1289

- Gainward Phantom GTX970 - RM1299

- ASUS GTX970 4GB DC2OC STRIX - RM1399

- Leadtek Hurricane GTX970 - RM1399

- Gigabyte G1 Gaming GTX970 - RM1499

- MSI GTX970 4GD5 OC TWIN FROZR V - RM1499

- MSI GTX970 Gaming Edition 4GBD5 256 - RM1499

- Zotac GTX970 AMP! Extreme 4GBD5 256 - RM1529

- MSI GTX970 4GD5 GOLD EDTION - RM1699

 

This is what I'm planning to get along with it:

Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz

Asrock H97 Pro4

Kingston HyperX Fury 1600 MHz (1x8GB)

Seasonic M12II-520W

+ if possible an SSD (840 evo 120gb) - already have a HDD, so SSD is optional

 

Ohh, just FYI but I don't plan to OC, or I could say I don't know how, but if I did, I'm still not going to.....also I'm trying to build a PC that can hopefully last at least for another 5 years before I upgrade or do anything to it

[Imakuni]

Yeah, I did some research as well and I wasn't able to find any shops selling the Gigabyte Windforce OC. Anyway I live in Malaysia where choices are limited and prices are amazingly hiked up. So I'll just list down the cheapest of what I've been able to find and in my country's currency (RM) so you can see the price difference (including the ones I stated above).

*sorted - cheapest to most expensive*

 

- Gainward GTX970 (Reference) - RM1099

- MSI GTX970 4G OC (TIGER) - RM1249

- Zotac GTX970 Dual Fans 4GBD5 256 - RM1249

- Palit GTX970 Jetstream - RM1289

- Gainward Phantom GTX970 - RM1299

- ASUS GTX970 4GB DC2OC STRIX - RM1399

- Leadtek Hurricane GTX970 - RM1399

- Gigabyte G1 Gaming GTX970 - RM1499

- MSI GTX970 4GD5 OC TWIN FROZR V - RM1499

- MSI GTX970 Gaming Edition 4GBD5 256 - RM1499

- Zotac GTX970 AMP! Extreme 4GBD5 256 - RM1529

- MSI GTX970 4GD5 GOLD EDTION - RM1699

 

This is what I'm planning to get along with it:

Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz

Asrock H97 Pro4

Kingston HyperX Fury 1600 MHz (1x8GB)

Seasonic M12II-520W

+ if possible an SSD (840 evo 120gb) - already have a HDD, so SSD is optional

 

Ohh, just FYI but I don't plan to OC, or I could say I don't know how, but if I did, I'm still not going to.....also I'm trying to build a PC that can hopefully last at least for another 5 years before I upgrade or do anything to it

Hmm.... I'll assume you'll use this PC for gaming, and maybe video editing. First off, I suggest you give us a link to a trusted store, as well as which number to look out for. We can best evaluate the price that way. So,

 

1. Don't buy the Xeon. It's not a bad CPU, but 9 times out of 10, an i5 or i7 will do a lot more for the same price, or, can do the same for a much lower price. Unless the Xeon is on a super sale, the i5/7 is your best bet. Either save money (and dump on other parts) or get a stronger CPU.

    

2. That mobo is just plain wrong. The reason why you get a good mobo is for you to OC or go with multi GPU configs. Since you said you just don't want to OC, and you wouldn't be able to SLI with that mobo anyway, you can go all out cheap and get an H81. It's the cheapest mobo for the 1150 socket. It'll save you some nice cash, that can be spent on other stuff.

    

3. Memory is "fine". If you'll stick with your current mobo (that has 4 mem slots), I suggest getting a 2x4gb kit instead, to make use of dual channel. If you'll follow my suggestion for the H81 mobo, a single 8gb stick is better, you can add a 2nd one later. You probably won't ever need 16gb, but I guess the option is there... Also, check out if other brands aren't cheaper. At least where I live, HyperX tends to cost more than other brands. You could save a few bucks that way

[79wjd]

 

1. Don't buy the Xeon. It's not a bad CPU, but 9 times out of 10, an i5 or i7 will do a lot more for the same price, or, can do the same for a much lower price. Unless the Xeon is on a super sale, the i5/7 is your best bet. Either save money (and dump on other parts) or get a stronger CPU

A Xeon E3 1231v3 is a 4770 with no iGPU. It's the performance of an i7 at the price of an unlocked i5 (plus runs a bit cooler/consumes less power than an i7 -- albeit such a minimal difference it doesn't matter other than being an indication that it's a higher binned chip). So debatably undeniably better than a locked i5 and i7 (unless integrated graphics is needded), and sometimes better than an unlocked i5 (depending on how you look at things -- higher clock speed vs. 4 additional threads); and a 4790k is better than both. 

[Imakuni]

A Xeon E3 1231v3 is a 4770 with no iGPU. It's the performance of an i7 at the price of an unlocked i5 (plus runs a bit cooler/consumes less power than an i7 -- albeit such a minimal difference it doesn't matter other than being an indication that it's a higher binned chip). So debatably undeniably better than a locked i5 and i7 (unless integrated graphics is needded), and sometimes better than an unlocked i5 (depending on how you look at things -- higher clock speed vs. 4 additional threads); and a 4790k is better than both. 

 

Price is everything...

[79wjd]

 

Price is everything...

Well, between consoles having 8-cores and DX12 equalizing loads across cores, those extra four threads could become more important than that extra 1ghz~ you get from overclocking. So it depends what path you want to take -- and both would likely have similar results in gaming performance. 

 

Plus a Xeon E3 1231 v3 ends up being cheaper since you can throw it on an h81 board vs. a 4690k, which really needs to be on a z97 board. 

[Imakuni]

Well, between consoles having 8-cores and DX12 equalizing loads across cores, those extra four threads could become more important than that extra 1ghz~ you get from overclocking. So it depends what path you want to take -- and both would likely have similar results in gaming performance. 

 

Plus a Xeon E3 1231 v3 ends up being cheaper since you can throw it on an h81 board vs. a 4690k, which really needs to be on a z97 board. 

I suppose you didn't read the topic. Op says "no OC". So both will go on a h81, provided he accepts my suggestion. Also, prices fluctuate between countries. For example, r9 290 costs more than a gtx970, and a 290x costs more than a 980 where I live.

[79wjd]

I suppose you didn't read the topic. Op says "no OC". So both will go on a h81, provided he accepts my suggestion. Also, prices fluctuate between countries. For example, r9 290 costs more than a gtx970, and a 290x costs more than a 980 where I live.

My comment still stands. It's worthwhile to go with at least one of the two routes -- either hyperthreading or overclocking, as both should be useful and provide similar results in future games.